2011 January
Focus on... Management

With the New Year under way, The Cooperator’s 2011 Co-op & Condo Expo is quietly taking shape as this spring’s must-attend event for the tri-state area’s property managers, trustees, and unit owners. Held at the Hilton New York in …

These are hardly the best of times for those who manage co-op and condo buildings, charged as they are with overseeing financial well-being, maintenance goals, legal issues and an almost unpredictable kaleidoscope of other daily concer…

Job losses. Bankruptcies. Foreclosures. These are tough times for everyone, but when homeowners fall on hard times, they are often late paying their condo or co-op fees. Some can’t even afford to pay them at all. Add in contractors and …

Drawing up a contract for management services looks at first glance like a simple task. Such contracts usually follow a particular format and outline similar services for both co-ops and condos, regardless of size. But what about contr…

Most buildings have emergency preparedness plans in case of fires, floods, or hurricanes. But there’s one form of crisis that very few have an organized response for: the public relations disaster. It could come in the form of a scandal…

As recently as five years ago, traditional phone logs and Rolodexes were a common part of a managing agent’s daily communications arsenal. Yet, with recent advances in property management software, such anachronistic methods are largely…

 As managers, residents, and board members of the city's residential buildings  gear up for 2011, sweeping up the tinsel and cookie crumbs leftover from holiday parties isn't the  only job at hand. From bedbug disclosure rules to a propose…

There comes a time in every New Yorker’s life when they are faced with a situation so grave, so urgent and so daunting, it can make even the toughest East Coaster crumble and cave: Laundry Day. Many have the tools to survive ev…

Kew Gardens in Queens seems to be just another urban neighborhood when you emerge from the Union Turnpike subway station. For instance, there is the long stretch of Queens Boulevard that is always busy with traffic. Lining the boulevard…

Over the past few months there have been several interesting and insightful court decisions. Here are a few legal cases that provide some helpful lessons. Vassi v. Salem House Condo Bd. Lesson: Condo boards need to make…

 Little by little, the world seems to be getting greener. As part of Mayor  Michael R. Bloomberg’s Greener, Greater Buildings Plan, new legislation has been passed that among  many other measures, requires all of the city’s private buildin…

 There's no question that the operational and administrative complexity of  multifamily buildings requires effective management to create and maintain a  safe, secure environment for residents and staff alike.    Property management…

Q If there is damage to my roof and it leaks into my condominium unit and I reported it to the board three times with no repairs made, can I repair it myself and deduct the cost from my common charges? —Falling on Deaf Ears …

Q Is it legal for the board to take the shareholders’ tax benefit credit every year without their consent, as a special assessment and a second assessment as well, within six months apart? I received the letter about this, contacted …